


Interplanetary Arts & Literary Festival

by raktajinos



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Bisexual Male Character, Canon-Typical Politics, Cardassian Anatomy, Cardassian Culture, Father-Son Relationship, First Time with a Cardassian, Intergenerational Trauma, M/M, Minor Julian Bashir/Elim Garak, Peace, Post-Canon, Post-Canon Cardassia, Post-War, Xeno, chosen family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-29
Updated: 2019-07-29
Packaged: 2020-07-26 16:00:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20029222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raktajinos/pseuds/raktajinos
Summary: On Cardassia for a literary festival, Jake meets a young Cardassian man who captures his attention in a way he never expected. (Worst summary ever, sorry! Story is better haha).





	Interplanetary Arts & Literary Festival

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rudigersmooch](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rudigersmooch/gifts).

> I was surprised at how much I enjoyed writing this gift for you and how much I enjoyed writing a post-canon Jake (whom I've never written before regardless). It was neat to be able to explore how an artist like Jake turned out, after spending his formative years in a political warzone and choosing not to follow the easy path of going to Starfleet. Post-canon Cardassia is one of my absolute favourite places to spend fic time in, so thank you for enabling me the chance to play in that sandbox. 
> 
> Notes on Internal Fanon: I've followed a bunch of fanon regarding post-revolution Cardassia here, namely Garak is the Castellan of Cardassia and that Julian lives there with him. I also have Jake refer to Garak as his uncle because its quick, conveys the fact that they're basically family, and the whole 'chosen family thing'. And Jake is like 30. 
> 
> Politics note: I do discuss Cardassian politics in this story, specifically in terms of peace and post-occupation stuff, but I figured you would be fine with that as no one would request Cardassian-specific prompts and *not* be okay with that. I stayed away from real world issues though, so it's pretty standard canon-specific politic talk.

Jake flushed as the crowd launched into applause and he exchanged a sheepish grin with the Bajoran woman sitting next to him, which she returned. 

“You did great, Jake,” she said, leaning over to whisper to him. 

“Thank Majal, you did too!” 

She waved off the compliment with an elegant flick of her hand, “these things get easier the more you do, don’t worry, soon you’ll be a pro,” 

Jake’s attention was pulled from Majal to the moderator who had begun to speak, the audience applause quieting. 

“We have a few moments for questions now, so if anyone has any, please use the microphones stationed in the aisles,” the moderator announced, indicating with her hands to the placement of the microphones. “And remember, as with all our programming this week at the Interplanetary Arts & Literary Festival, we’re engaging with some difficult topics here, so lets keep things considerate of others.” 

Difficult topics, Jake smiled privately to himself, they could say that again. The Festival was in its inaugural year, hosted on Cardassia in an attempt to foster better peace relations across the quadrant and represent the new frontier for Cardassia. Under Garak’s guidance as Castellan, there was a renewed investment in art and literature, wanting to change Cardassia’s legacy as genocidal warlords to a people of peace. It was a lofty goal, but Jake was in support of it, and immediately said yes when he was invited to participate. 

Jake had been surprised with the invitation, while he had been building a name for himself in certain writing circles, he didn’t feel as if he was quite at the level to be participating here. The Festival coordinator was vehement in her disagreement, and wanted him to come as part of their Young Voices, New Hope programming panel. Something about him ‘witnessing the first steps towards peace between Bajor and Cardassia as an outsider’ - and he was sure being son of the Emissary didn’t hurt either. 

Not everyone was as thrilled with the developments and new path for Cardassia however, and there was a not-so-silent group of people who didn’t want this new path. Garak had the entire security force of the city focused on keeping the peace during the Festival.

Over the week long festival, he would be participating in two workshopping panels and would be doing a reading from his most recent novel. He just finished his first workshop - a panel on living through the post-war period and childhood, where he was joined by a Bajoran, a Cardassian, and Majal, who was half-Bajoran and half-Cardassian and for whom Jake felt completely under-qualified to sit next to, let alone speak in tandem with on these issues. He’d had a bit of a fanboy moment when he met her, and gushed rather embarrassingly about the _guttural beauty_ of her work. She had been kind enough to find his flailing charming and he found himself calming down enough to have a wonderful conversation with her about the pros and cons of the Bolean comma. 

Two small lines had formed at the microphones and Jake listened intently as people asked a random assortment of questions to the panel, some insightful, some silly, and he chimed in where he could add something of value. 

A young Cardassian man was next to the microphone, and to Jake’s delight, the question was for him. 

“Mr Sisko, my question is in regards to the dynamics of your relationship with your father, the Bajoran Emissary. One thing the youth of Cardassia are struggling with right now is reconciling the past we know with the future we believe in. We know a majority of our parents were participants or complicit bystanders in the decades-long genocide of the Bajoran people - “ that drew a few cheers of ‘truth’ from the audience “ - some of us were very young, some of us old enough to understand what was going on. We struggle with our own pasts of _not_ acting in defiance to our parents but also continuing to live with them now as we attempt to build a new future. My question for you is, was there ever a time when you felt conflicted as a child to the world around you or where you disagreed with your father or actively acted out against him…and how you reconcile with that action or inaction today,” the man concluded. 

Jake paused, holding onto his microphone, “wow, now that’s a big question.” The audience chuckled a little. 

“Thank you for asking that insightful question, which, I think really gets to the heart of what this entire Festival is about. I continue to struggle with my role as a bystander, that I didn’t really do anything when I could have. A part of that was because of my father, he needed me to not get involved so that he didn’t have to juggle another element into the tenuous balance that was his life at the time…which is something I didn’t recognize either until I was older; how stressful his life was, as a man deeply devoted to peace and who found himself aligning more and more with the Bajoran way of life while having to remain a Federation officer and broker peace with the Cardassians - many of whom he considered friends. It’s something we’ve spoken of often, my father and I, especially how he was able to build and maintain friendships with people who had committed such atrocious acts of violence upon others. So your question may be better suited for him than me, assuming you could, of course, get a non-vedek answer out of him” Jake said wrly, the audience laughing at his joke. 

“In many ways, I was shielded against the realities of what was going on, particularly when I was younger,” he continued, “but then I was also, in effect, being raised by these same people my father considered friends, Bajorans and Cardassians alike who had murdered so many people, and others who had stood apathetically by and let the war rage on,” he added, thinking warming of Nerys, Garak, and even Quark. 

“That doesn’t really answer your question, does it? I’m sorry. I guess to sum-up, yes, there was tension with my father, particularly as I grew up and it did strain our relationship. But we’re good, he has always been an advocate for dialogue, for speaking your feelings, for listening to the feelings of others, to make peace a priority - so with that as our structure, we’ve been working through our issues. And we have it relatively easy compared to some of the work being done here! You are all really inspiring and I think continuing to participate in activities of reconciliation are important, events like this, working on forgiving the past, but not forgetting, in order to create a better future. We can’t undo what we’ve done, but we can work so that we don’t do it again,” he concluded. 

The Cardassian man thanked him for his answer and sat down, prompting the moderator to bring the panel to a close. “Thank you all for coming this morning to this wonderful workshop, and thank you to all our panelists - who are all staying the week with us here, we’re so lucky, so make sure to check the schedule for more of their workshops and readings. Up next here on the Peace Stage we have a panel on Writing the War: Ethics in Holodeck Programming, moderated by celebrated programmer Tom Paris, and over on the Sun Stage we have an extra-special reading from celebrated Cardassian artist Numfar, who, I have on good authority, did bring their wine drums for the dance of joy, so that is not to be missed. Thank you everyone!” 

There was a whirl of activity and noise as the hundred or so people in the pavilion rose to move to their next scheduled event or to get better seats here, security calmly watching an eye over everyone. Jake thought he might stay for the holodeck workshop as he had been approached by a few developers to adapt one of his earlier short stories into a holoprogram and he had some concerns about adapting it, but he was suddenly famished, not having eaten before his workshop, and decided he should get something to eat. 

He opened his program guide - the Festival going fancy in having physical copies made for attendees, which was a nice touch. There was a list of different local attractions to see, restaurants to eat at, etc and a map with all the locations - and festival sites - noted. Jake recognized he could use his dataport to just direct him where to go, but there was something about the classic paper map that tapped into his artistic side; the same way he would occassionally use a pencil and paper to write on; he felt it connected him to the authors who came before him, writing in the stripped down essentialist expression. 

But as he looked at the map in front of him and then up at the markings on the buildings around him, he accepted that he was officially lost. For the son of a Starfleet officer, he was absolute shit at navigation and he resigned himself to having to use the dataport, shuffling through his bag for the device. He was so distracted on trying to find the device and frustrated that he had managed to get lost that he walked right into the back of someone, nearly knocking himself over. 

“I’m so sorry, please excuse me,” Jake exclaimed, embarrassed, bending over to pick up the bag he’d dropped. 

A deep masculine voice chuckled, “it’s quite alright. No harm done,” 

The man knelt down to help pick up Jake’s things, Jake continuing to apologize while he helped. 

Jake finally looked up at the man who he’d so thoroughly embarrassed himself in front of and was surprised to find he was a Cardassian; or rather, he was surprised that he was surprised as he’d had enough experience with Cardassians being exceptionally polite but also quite brutish in their manners. The man was nicely dressed, in a style Jake had picked up as being the casual style for what would be classified as ‘young professionals’ here on Cardassia. He looked a little older than Jake was, with a beautiful deep blue hue to his skin and sharp, clear blue eyes. 

“Thank you, again, I’m so embarrassed for walking into you like that,” Jake said as they stood up, the man handing over the paper Festival guide that had fallen amidst the chaos. 

The Cardassian waved his hands as if to wash away the apology, “your apology is most accepted, and, sorry to be so bold, but could I help you find wherever it is you are trying to find?” the man asked, smiling at him slightly 

“Do I look that lost?” Jake asked, laughing. 

“Unfortunately, yes,” he said, nodding to the paper map he had just handed over. “Plus, I saw you at the Festival this afternoon so I know you’re not from around here,”

“Oh! You were at the Festival? Have you been enjoying it?” 

“I am actually. I must confess, I was at your workshop just now so I have you at disadvantage as I know who you are, Jake Sisco, and yet you do not know who I am. I am J’amal Tabreen, you can call me J’amal,” he said reaching his hand out in the traditional human-greeting. 

Jake accepted his hand, “nice to meet you, J’amal, and yes, I could use some help navigating, thank you, I’m trying to find a good place to eat,”

“Well, then I absolutely must insist you try Lilhandra - it’s been here for decades, and they actually ran an underground maquis resistance ring out of their kitchen - a historical detail you might appreciate,”

Jake’s face lit up, “oh, that sounds wonderful! What sort of food is it?”

“A real blend of things. It started as a traditional Cardassian place, but over the decades of resistance members coming and going, they’ve really reflected all the quadrant cultures in their food,”

Jake looked hesitantly at his map, not wanting to attempt another dig around in his bag for his dataport right now, “would you mind telling me how to get there?” he asked the man - J’amal. 

J’amal smiled, “I’ll do even better, I will take you there myself,” and he gestured towards the main road from which Jake had taken earlier. 

“Oh, I wouldn’t want to put you out,” 

“It’s no problem at all, and its my duty as a Cardassian to ensure someone like yourself doesn’t get himself into too much trouble while he’s here,” 

“But maybe a little trouble?” Jake teased, 

J’amal paused and looked curiously at him, “perhaps a little trouble would be fine,” he smiled at him and it made Jake feel strange; the pit of his stomach making itself known in a way that was different than the hunger pains he’d been experiencing. 

They began walking in the direction of the restaurant, talking about the festival interspersed with J’amal pointing out local landmarks that he thought Jake might appreciate - which he did. Jake enjoyed coming to these types of events to promote his work yes, but primarily to meet other artists and experience other worlds and cultures, which was something he had learned to value from growing up within a Starfleet-influenced childhood, but he’d come to appreciate it even moreso outside the military structure; to just meet people, to experience the variety of the universe. He’d likely never meet someone like J’amal if he was in Starfleet, which would have been a shame, but instead he was able to get a personalized tour of a random area of the city from a local. 

Jake saw the restaurant come into view and he had enjoyed the casual pace with which they walked to the restaurant and he was surprised at how much he was enjoying J’amal’s company. He was well-read, intellectual, and there was something very nice to the rhythm and cadence of his voice and he was not eager to end their conversation so early nor eat on his own tonight. 

Jake turned to his companion, “would you like to join me for dinner? My treat for saving me from almost certain harm…” 

J’amal grinned, but a pained expression was around his eyes, “that would be wonderful, thank you,” 

—— 

Lilhandra turned out to be a fantastic place to eat and Jake was overwhelmed with the number of dishes and customization on the menu; even seeing some Earth dishes on there. He’d wanted to try something new and J’amal had offered any help he wanted in ordering. 

“What do you recommend,” he asked J’amal when they were seated, scrolling through the digital menu without focus. 

They were at a small table in the far corner, quite secluded, a little romantic in a way, Jake had noted, the location being a great setting for a novel. 

“What are you in the mood for?” 

“Something…new. I’ve not had authentic Cardassian before, and I’d like to try,” he said, realizing the potential for double-entendre as he said it. He flicked his eyes up to J’amal to see how he took it. 

The man looked at him with his bright blue eyes, the corner of his mouth ever-so-slightly quirking up, the attention making Jake feel squirmy. 

“Interesting,” the man said plainly. He didn’t ignore the double-entendre but he didn’t lean into it either. 

Jake shook himself mentally, what was he doing? He didn’t mean to sort-of flirt with him, but he wasn’t embarrassed by the slip up either. 

A waiter came by, speaking briefly to J’amal who ordered something called malheepa, which Jake inferred was some sort of beverage from the context clues. The waiter returned after a few minutes with an exquisite tea tray, confirming Jake’s suspicions. 

“I took the liberty of ordering us tea, it will really compliment the meal,” J’amal said, picking up the pot and pouring Jake a cup as well as himself. 

Jake was distracted by watching J’amal pour the tea, focus diverted to the contrast between the man’s skin and the pot, the grey-blueish hue of his hand and the deep red of the pot, one hand on the handle, other supporting the pot from the bottom. Jake’s gaze followed from where his fingers were wrapped around the handle, his gaze following up to an elegant wrist, a strong forearm, ridges twisting around the muscles. 

“It is best without sweetener, but give it a taste first, human taste buds are different than Cardassian,” J’amal said, trying to hide a grin. 

Jake realized he’d been caught staring, which was a little embarrassing; his second moment of embarrassment for the day with this man. He shook it off and tried his tea, it was oddly salty and spicey, but not unlike a drink Nerys had served to him. 

“This reminds me of bahook,” he said

“They are very similar, indeed,” J’amal said. “Do you like it?”

“Very much,” and he took another sip of the warm beverage, hands wrapping around the cup, “it’s ka’s meuhl da’vell” he added, complimenting the tea in Kardassi.

“You speak Kardassi?” J’amal asked proudly, 

Jake grinned, “yes. Well, I have a conversational fluency; I couldn’t handle a debate, but I can hold a conversation and read it pretty good,” 

“That is wonderful; I am a tad biased, but it is a beautiful language,” 

The waiter came by to take their food order and Jake let J’amal do all the ordering, preferring to be surprised with whatever the man picked for him. 

“Are you an artist? A writer?” Jake inquired, changing topics

“I wouldn’t use such a professional sounding label as artist, but I..oh, what is that word you Terrans use, I dabble.”

“A lot of artists dabble,” Jake teased, “what do you dabble in?”

“Sculpture mainly. My grandmother was a very celebrated sculptor and I would spend many of my childhood days in her studio during the war,” 

“That sounds lovely,”

“It was - and it wasn’t. I was lucky to be insulated from the war, my parents were quite involved with the occupation and while my grandmother disagreed with their politics, my parents entrusted her with my care while they were off slaughtering Bajorans,” J’amal said, his voice having an edge to it. 

The stark shift in tone startled Jake, he was still adjusting to the changes in how Cardassians - particularly younger Cardassians - were speaking about the war and occupation. 

“Sorry,” J’amal said, seeing Jake’s face.

“No, it’s okay. It’s how you and your people are struggling to reconcile your past; that’s some heavy emotional work, I really don’t have a stake in that, so you can’t offend me,” he offered,

“Thank you,” J’amal said, “which reminds me, you did well answer Michae’s question at the workshop this afternoon,”

“Michae?”

“The one asking about inter-generational trauma,” 

Jake nodded, placing the name to the man, “I rambled,” 

“It was an unanswerable question. Michae is struggling moreso than a lot of us. My parents were involved in the occupation, but Michae’s whole family was very high ranking, his family ran one of the work camps on Bajor - he grew up in the camp essentially. He was friends with prisoners, they babysat him, he fell in love with one of them….he’s not doing well,”

“My goodness, that’s awful,” 

“Ya. He’s trying though, which is what’s important. We check on him,”

“We?”

“I’m involved in a group that provides resources for people struggling, we work with a lot of Cardassians who are looking to reconcile in the post-war period,” 

“That’s fantastic!” Jake said, truly impressed. It was this sort of work that he loved being exposed to in his ability to be a travelling artist; real, on-the-ground work. 

“Thanks,” J’amal said, dipping his head at the praise. 

The waiter returned with their food, and J’amal gave a small tour of what he’d ordered for them, describing the food and its history. Jake was fascinated by it all and it was delicious too, and he loved hearing J’amal talk about Cardassian history and culture, and he watched as his dinner partner continued to speak excitedly about it, hands gesturing. It gave Jake an opportunity to better watch J’amal and he was a bit ashamed that he’d never noticed the intricate beauty of Cardassian ridges before, the way they moved over the skin, mapping a unique route along the flesh, scales of different hues creating a ripple of shade and light; if Jake had been a painter or a sculptor he would want to recreate these beautiful lines in his medium, try and capture the sort of primeval historicism laid within the skin. 

He could see, just from focusing on J’amal’s clavicle, the evolutionary lines of reptilian to mammal, the ridges sculpting out that history within the very design of their species; the way the ridges framed the face, particularly the eyes - the ridges around J’amal’s eyes had an angularity to them that felt both familiar and unique, framing the man’s bright blue eyes in a way that you couldn’t help be drawn into them. Jake wondered if this was a feature for all Cardassians - an ability to draw people in with their beauty - though, for some reason he’d never been prey to this before, so maybe it had something to do with J’amal specifically. 

Like the way he phrased words differently, his lips wrapping around such eloquent phrases in a way that would make any author excited, would make any author want those lips to read their work aloud…. Jake realized then, quite suddenly, that he was attracted to this Cardassian man, extremely attracted to him, physically and intellectually. 

He also realized he hadn’t heard a thing J’amal had said for at least a minute, instead having used all his time to apparently map the man’s skin into his mind. 

J’amal had clearly noticed as well that Jake had stopped listening, going silent and giving him a knowing smile. 

“I’m terribly sorry, I got lost in my imagination there,” Jake said, trying to recover from being caught - for a second time - ogling the man. 

“Well, seeing as you are a writer, I suppose that is to be expected now and again. I only hope that I could serve as inspiration for something you’re passionate about,” 

“I am quite passionate,” he trailed off. 

“Do you talk to your parents much now?” Jake asked returning the conversation back to safer ground. 

J’amal grimaced, “not really; my mother and I are...trying. My father is in denial - he thinks that because I work in the government that I’m going to overthrow it or something, which I’m not. I’m happy with the current leadership…and I’m not just saying that,” he winked at Jake. 

Jake laughed, an unsettling feeling in his stomach that he chalked up to hunger. 

“You do have me at a disadvantage, as you seem to know everything about me,” 

“There are still some mysteries for me to discover, Jake,” he replied, gaze ever-so-slightly flicking up and down his body, making Jake feel warm and nervous at the same time. 

Emboldened, Jake did a thing most unlike himself, he let his hand drift down to rest on the forearm of his dinner partner, fingers gently playing with the soft fabric there. J’amal paused ever-so-briefly before continuing on, letting Jake’s hand rest there. 

“You said you work for the government?” 

“Yes, I’m a clerk in the parliament.”

“Do you like it?”

“I like it well enough, I have a knack for foreign policy so they put me to work,” he replied. 

Jake chuckled inwardly at how much J’amal sounded like Garak - a simple tailor - and he wondered if all Cardassians were that cagey about their professions, enjoying the mystery of the non-specifics. 

They continued their dinner, conversation flowing easily, covering everything from J’amals work as a clerk, to Jake’s childhood, to his plans on what he wanted to see on Cardassia. 

“I’m enjoying the chance to experience Cardassia, especially now, there’s just so much beauty happening around here,” he said, and he would deny that his eyes were lingering on his dinner partner. 

“Well, if you’re looking to experience more of the new Cardassia, some friends and I were planning on going to a club these evening - its a new club, owned by a Bajoran-Cardassian collective who want to bring in musical artists from different cultures. You are more than welcome to join us,” J’amal offered. 

“That sounds fun, I would love to come, thank you for inviting me,” he replied, excited for the chance to get out and hopefully dance. 

Jake paid for their meal, good to his word, though J’amal tried to pick up the bill. 

“Don’t be silly,” Jake said, swiping his paytab, “you can buy me a drink at the club…or owe me a dance.”

________ 

Jake was nervous on the walk over to J’amal’s friends’ place. He liked meeting new people and he was excited to go out and dance later, he wasn’t nervous about any of that. Instead, he was nervous about J’amal and whatever it was that Jake was feeling. He accepted he was attracted to the other man, that he wanted to run his hands and mouth over every ridge on the man’s body, wrap his legs around him and climb him like a tree. 

If he was being honest with himself, he was nervous by how swiftly this came over him; he usually developed an attraction after spending time with someone, but they’d had dinner and Jake was ready to take him home over a few hours of conversation. There was also the fact that he was a Cardassian; he’d never been remotely attracted to a Cardassian before - man or woman; he was friends with Cardassians, he just never felt that spark, their reptilian design not doing anything for Jake. Until J’amal apparently, where those very traits were tickling some fetish-part of his brain. 

They were walking side by side, conversing about the latest novel from Dorvath K’larr, a Klingon artist whose work was quite controversial in its exploration of alternate history. Jake was keeping up his side of the discussion while simultaneously panicking on the inside regarding the other man. 

Jake glanced at the man walking next to him, the light from the street lamps and moons casting a beautiful pinkish hue onto his blue-grey skin. He looked both beautiful and imposing in this light, the sight making his stomach flipflop. Beautiful on the outside, but also on the inside, his intellectualism and care for people really being the lynchpin in Jake’s lust. He wasn’t even sure if J’amal liked him…he thought maybe he might, or at the very least he wasn’t repelled by him, taking his overt blunders in stride. 

J’amal stopped suddenly, Jake stopping in tandem, “what’s up?” he asked, looking around for anything out-of-the-ordinary, but the mostly residential street seemed normal. 

J’amal turned toward Jake, put a hand on the side of his head and pulled him in for a kiss, soft, gentle, demanding nothing more. Jake went stiff in shock, not expecting that. 

“There,” J’amal said, releasing him, but keeping eye contact, “stop worrying about it,” 

“Worrying about what?” he asked, still stunned

“You’re attracted to me,” J’amal said through a sly grin, “stop worrying if its mutual; it is. I could practically hear your internal dialogue the entire night. You should not gamble by the way, your face gives everything away. Now its up to you to decide what you want to do about it,” he said, “we’re here though, it’s that red door,” he said, pointing to a door not three meters away, turning and walking towards it. 

Jake was still in a state of shock, but followed quickly behind him. J’amal knocked on the red door, it opening almost immediately by a heavily-pierced Bajoran woman, “J’AMAL!” she yelled, leaping at him and wrapping her arms around him in a big hug. 

“I see you’ve brought someone,” she said, noticing Jake standing next to him. 

“This is Jake Sisco, he’s in the city for the Festival, he’s a writer,” J’amal introduced. 

The woman leapt at Jake and wrapped her arms around him the same way she did J’amal, “I’m Merta, it’s lovely to meet you Jake,” 

“Nice to meet you too, Merta,” he said as he was ushered into the house and encouraged to take a seat on a couch. 

Merta took over the introductions from here, introducing him to the others in the room, three Cardassians, Darus, Stalitz, and Tansy, another Bajoran named Pete, and then a Trill named Maizeda, “Jake is a writer and he’s here for the Festival,” she introduced. 

“Sisco? As in Benjamin?” Pete asked, sceptically looking at Jake.

“Yes,” Jake said nervously, “Ben is my father,” 

“Well, damn, we got the son of the Emissary here!” Pete said, grinning, “I’m a big fan of your father, it’s an honour to meet you,” 

“Ah, well, thanks,” he said, tossing an awkward glance towards J’amal who was leaning against the doorframe, who just grinned at him, being no help whatsoever. Jake never really got used to moments like this. 

“Rumour has it you’re related to the Castellan,” Darus, one of the Cardassians critiqued from his position on the opposite couch. 

Jake chuckled awkwardly, “not related by blood, but yes, I’ve known him most of my life and he’s like an uncle to me,” which was true, and Garak had event insisted Jake stay with himself and Julian while he was planet-side, setting up a little guest house on his estate for him to use. 

“Son of the Emissary, nephew of the Castellan, my god J’amal, what sort of rich blood ponds are you fishing around in these days” Merta teased, punching J’amal on the shoulder. 

J’amal threw a pillow at her, “now, now, leave poor Jake alone, he’s going to come with us to Legalt tonight,” 

“Then we’d better get him a drink,” Maizeda said, “J’amal, get your date a drink for goodness sake,” she chastised. 

Jake met J’amal’s eyes over her use of the word ‘date’, J’amal winked at him before turning to go into the kitchen area. 

Jake turned his attention back to the room, the conversation focusing on *** 

His gaze drew back to J’amal in the kitchen, from his position on the couch, he could see him in profile and in a conversation with Tansy. The conversation looked tense, with Tansy gesturing emphatically, J’amal just crossing him arms over his chest in a defensive position. Jake couldn’t hear what they were saying, nor could he read their lips, but he could tell J’amal was getting increasingly frustrated with the conversation. He said something in rebuttal, looking towards the sitting room while he spoke, his eyes meeting Jake’s inquisitive gaze. Seeing Jake watch them stopped conversation quickly enough, Tansy looking towards Jake and then throwing her hands up in the air in resignation.

Jake wondered why Tansy seemed to dislike him, his mind jumping from reason to reason. He didn’t really know this group of people - or J’amal - maybe they were some sort of political fighter group and Jake’s association with Garak was a danger (or the exact reason he was here; he’d also not thrown that idea out either), or had J’amal and Tansy been involved and her hatred of him was simply jealousy? Whatever it was, it didn’t seem to deter J’amal who came back to the room, sitting next to him until they left for the club.

————— 

The club was located in the south end of the city, an area that had been slowly been taken over by artists and local entrepreneurs… so inspired, he wanted to come back here and write, soak up the spirit of this place. 

Jake wasn’t sure what he expected, but not this loudly coloured and lit up space; he could feel the music from out on the street. 

“Identification.” The very large bouncer at the door said to Jake

“Don’t worry about it, it’s standard for any off-worlders,” J’amal said, leaning over into his personal space. 

The inside of the club matched the exterior, there was just more of it, the dancefloor packed with people of all different species jumping around to the beat of the three DJs playing on raised platforms. There were small lights everywhere, people wearing light-up jewellery, and holographic projections in the air above the dancing bodies. The music was both familiar and unfamiliar to Jake, having a very danceable drop beat as the base layer, easy for people to dance to, but the sounds on top were foreign to Jake - nonetheless he wanted to dance, wanted to jump into the throng of people. 

“This is awesome!” Jake practically yelled to his new friends, Dharva gave him a thumbs up and then pointed towards the far side of the club. 

At his confused look, J’amal pressed himself lightly up against Jake, putting a hand on his lower back, making his skin there tingle at the contact. J’amal leaned in, lowering his head to Jake’s ear, “we’re going to get a drink, did you want one?” his breath tickled Jake’s skin, sending goosebumps down his neck. 

“Please!” 

“Come on then,” he said, his thumb rubbing a small circle on the exposed skin from Jake’s shirt riding up. 

The warm, excited feeling that had been tickling in Jake’s stomach earlier that day was now beginning to grow and he felt emboldened. He knew where this was going; and, despite knowing very little about Cardassian male anatomy, he felt emboldened by J’amal’s attentions, glad the attraction was reciprocated. 

For the first time in a long time, Jake felt like being impulsive. Irrational even in his decision making. But as he let his eyes roam J’amal’s body, he felt even better about his lack of care. He was going to have fun. Their fingers touched as J’amal handed him a shot glass of an oddly glowing liquid, and Jake shot the drink back in one swallow, the liquid cooling as it went down his throat. He was going to have a lot of fun.   
— 

Jake was drunk. Whatever alcohol they’d been serving him, it was delicious and he was in that perfect state of drunkenness where everything is great and you just want to dance. Which he was doing, and had been doing for the past few hours; he was sweaty and his muscles would be mad at him tomorrow but he didn’t care. He’d also gotten progressively more handsy with J’amal, to the point of it being on the edge of filthy and leaving absolutely no questions as to their mutual interest. He felt nothing like himself, but also exactly like himself. He never let himself be so wanton and physical, and it felt so freeing to just let go on this stunning planet and with this beautiful man.  
The DJs began switching up the song, bleeding the current one into a new one with a deeper beat, they held it though, holding the crowd hostage in the refusal to drop the beat, the music continuing to rise to the inevitable crescendo. Jake had his arms wrapped around J’amal’s neck, his thumbs teasing the other man’s neck ridges - that was something Jake learned quite quickly was an erogenous zone and he enjoyed the breathless moan he would drag out of J’amal when he touched him there. The music began to build to that inevitable crescendo, the crowd jumping and Jake was practically dry humping J’amal’s thigh, his dick rock hard, they were pressed so close together. As the beat dropped, Jake took the opportunity to bite J’amal’s neck ridges, right where his neck met his shoulder, pressing his tongue into the grooves there under his teeth. He’d been thinking about doing it for a few hours now, curious as to the reaction he would get if a light touch earned him such addictive moans.  
J’amal went rigid, his hands, which had been on Jake’s ass for most of the night, stilled. Jake lifted his head from J’amal’s neck, panic setting in that he’d done something wrong. 

“J’amal, I’m sorry, was that -” he tried to step away, give the man some space, but J’amal held onto him firmly. 

“Ohhhhhhhhh, Jakeeeeee gone and doneeee itt” a very drunk Merta yelled at them, a giant grin on her face. Stalitz, Tansy, and Pete were all grinning at him, Pete drunkedly clapping in excitement. 

“What?-” Jake said, very confused. 

J’amal released Jake and stepped back, and Jake felt the pit of his stomach drop. J’amal must have seen the mess of emotions on his face, cause he pulled Jake in for a sloppy kiss. 

“Come with me,” he whispered to him, running a hand down his arm until he had Jake’s hand within his own, turning and leading them both off the dance floor, wolf calls from the group followed them off the floor. 

J’amal led them through the club into a secluded hallway in the back, “where are-” Jake had started to ask, but didn’t get a chance to finish as J’amal pushed him up against a wall and plastered himself up against him, pushing a leg between Jake’s thighs, the friction making Jake moan loudly. J’amal cut him off with a filthy kiss, his hands pushing up Jake’s shirt to get a firm grip of the flesh around his waist. 

“I forgot you don’t know Cardassian customs,” J’amal said, trailing kisses down Jake’s throat. 

“Why, what did I do?” he asked, his own hands unbuttoning the shirt J’amal was wearing. This is where the night was heading, Jake just never expected he’d be doing it in the back of the club, but the idea thrilled him. 

“You bit my Clotal ridges, the ridges at the base of my neck,” he said, resting his forehead against Jake’s, his voice a little breathless. 

“Yeah, I was curious. You got all breathy when I did this,” he said running a thumb along the ridges lower on his neck, earning him a hitch in J’amal’s breath. “I wondered what would happen if I bit it…was it..not a good feeling? I’m sorry,” 

“Jake, it was the absolute opposite of unpleasant. It was…literally orgasmic,” he explained, looking slightly uncomfortable at having to explain it. 

“Ohhh,” Jake said, understanding. 

“It’s just surprised me is all and it’s socially…controversial,” 

“How?”

“It would be the equivalent of me giving you a blow job on the dance floor,” he said. 

“Oh!” Jake said, the image though of J’amal on his knees taking Jake in went right to his cock. 

“People definitely noticed,” J’amal added 

Jake shrugged, “Is it bad that I don’t really care” 

“No, I don’t either. I’m more into the fact that you did it.” 

“Can I do it again?” Jake asked, lightly tapping the ridge area, “..or is it a ‘have to wait 30 minutes’ sort of thing,” 

J’amal’s eyes met Jake’s, the heat there making Jake feel all tingly. 

“You can do it again, no waiting required. After too much attention, the nerves can become oversensitive, but…” he trailed off. 

Jake grinned and pushed his hands up J’amal’s chest, skin semi-exposed from the buttons Jake had undone earlier, his fingers dipping into the exposed scales around his neck. He added his tongue, leaving wet open kisses as his tongue followed the trail his fingers had just taken, continuing the path marked in his skin by ridges. 

J’amal moaned and put a hand on the wall to support himself as he leaned into Jake. 

Jake followed the path to the end of the exposed skin, his shirt in the way; he moved up to the main ridge, the large one that ran up to his ears, the one Jake bit earlier. He let his mouth settle onto it, taking his time as he ran his tongue ever-so-slowly along the large ridge, making sure to map each scale indentation. He made a point to avoid using his teeth, wanting to see how far he could push J’amal, to see just how sensitive this area was. 

It was apparently very sensitive as J’amal’s breathing had begun to get shallower, small moans escaping, the hand on Jake’s hip starting to pleasantly dig into the flesh there. It occurred to Jake that this was very similar to giving a blow job, his jaw was sore, his tongue did most of the work, and there was an obscene amount of saliva involved. He was pretty good at blow jobs, so he leaned into that, letting it bolster his confidence. Jake grinned, trailing his mouth across J’amal’s clavicle as he switched sides, stopping to circle his tongue around the swirl of ridges at the base of J’amal’s throat. He repeated the same slow pattern on the other side of J’amal’s neck, this time letting a bit more of his saliva drip onto the man’s chest. 

“Jake…,” J’amal said, his voice low and dark. 

Jake decided to take that as a warning sign that he was about to come, though Jake had no idea what that looked like in a Cardassian…was there fluid? Jake kinda hoped there was fluid…or something he could lick at least. 

J’amal’s breathing increased, as did the pressure of his fingers on his hip, Jake hoped there would be marks later. 

Deciding to give J’amal release, he navigated his mouth to the spot at the apex of his neck where he bit earlier, biting down a little harder this time, running his tongue a little quicker along the ridges in his mouth. 

J’amal moaned loudly, burying his face in Jake’s neck to try and stifle the volume. He sagged against Jake as his body shook, stilling once he was done, Jake taking comfort in the warm pressure of his body pressed against his, his own cock painfully hard pressing against J’amal’s thigh. 

“Jake,” J’amal said finally, lifting his head. 

“Yeah?” he said apprehensively, thinking he did a good job, if his swollen lips were any indication. 

“You sure you’ve never done that before?” he asked

Jake laughed, “no, never,” 

“Well then, you have quite the talent…and quite the tongue,” J’amal said, kissing Jake gently. 

“Are there other sensitive ridges…elsewhere?” Jake asked pulling away. The question brought another moan from J’amal. 

“Yes, but I’d have to be naked for you to access them,” he said breathlessly

“I am in full support of you getting naked,” Jake said, his eyes blown wide in arousal. 

J’amal chuckled, “not here,” 

“We can go to my place,” Jake offered. 

J’amal gave him a ‘are you serious’ look which made Jake laugh. 

“What? Don’t want to get naked in your head of state’s guest house?” 

“Oh, I don’t mind that so much,” he said, pushing a hand into Jake’s pants, “its more of me making an absolute wanton mess out of the Castellan’s nephew,” he said, wrapping a hand around Jake’s hard cock, “over and over again” he flicked his wrist, “your screams might wake up our dear Castellan,” he started a pumping motion, paying close attention to the tip of Jake’s cock, “to say nothing of the laundry after-the-fact,” 

“J’amal..I’m going to…” he started, and he was. 

“That’s the point, my dear author,” he whispered in his ear, wet mouth leaving a trail down Jake’s throat, biting down on the same spot as Jake bit him, pulling the skin into his mouth and worrying it. The idea of having a mark there in the morning was enough to push Jake over the edge and he came in a hot sticky mess in J’amal’s hand. 

He threw his head back against the wall as the sensation rolled over him; everything about this night rolling into one fucking awesome orgasm. 

“Come on, we’ll go to my place,” he said once Jake had come back down. He pushed Jake’s cock back inside his pants and righted his clothes before turning to his own to fix up. 

Jake felt like a teenager, being reckless, not really thinking about consequences, just having fun, following the emotion. He smiled lazily at J’amal, watching him make himself look presentable, his attention focused on his clothes, letting Jake observe freely. Prophets he was beautiful and Jake was giddy with the desire and freedom to touch. 

“What?” J’amal asked, hearing the chuckle from Jake. 

“Nothing,” Jake said, “this just isn’t me and its fun,” 

“You don’t normally seduce aliens or have sex in the back of a club on an alien world?” J’amal teased, 

“Nope,” Jake laughed 

“Aren’t I special then,”

“You are,” Jake said, voice going serious. He was mostly sober now, but the afterbuzz of the alcohol and the sex was making him feel more free than he normally did. J’amal met his gaze, meeting his intensity. 

“Jake, I - “

“J’amal!” a woman’s voice rang through the hallway. 

They both turned to see Tansy down near the entryway, arms crossed and looking angry. 

“Tansy,” he replied calmly. 

“We have to go, we’ve been called into work, you might remember that, its a thing some of us actually take some pride in,” she snapped. 

J’amal shot her a dark look. “Give me a moment,” 

“One minute,” she said, turning to give them some privacy 

“Jake, I have to go, I’m really sorry about this,” 

“I mean…that makes sense….why wouldn’t a governmental clerk have to go to work in the middle of the night,” he replied sarcastically. 

“Jake,” he pleaded. 

“Go, it’s fine, Mr Mysterious,” Jake said, waving him away. 

————— 

His body was a confused state of emotion; relaxed from the alcohol and great sex, but also on edge from knowing they didn’t get the chance to continue…and he really wanted to go back to J’amal’s place and finish what they started. In a way though, this was a bit of a mixed blessing because now he had the opportunity to research Cardassian male anatomy and be less of a clueless nube the next time he was with J’amal. 

When he was back in the guest house at Garak’s estate, he set about his task and started searching the various networks he had access to. One handy thing about being on Cardassia for this quest was his access to the Cardassian cultural database and global network, which was decidedly harder to access when not planet-side. 

What he found, out in the unregulated world of the web could be classified into one of four categories: one: anatomy diagrams and the like, two: pornography, and three: forums and personals of people of all races looking to have sex with one or more Cardassians, and four: guides on inter-species pregnancy/parenting where one of the parents was a Cardassian. 

The first was helpful - at least he knew where some of J’amal’s body parts were now and what they were called, in a stricktly scientific way; they were completely unhelpful in a romantic, seductive guide way. He now knew that despite the rumours, Cardassians were in fact mammals, that there was a cloacas, and that Cardassians all carried their reproductive organs internally, with male Cardassians having a sort of retractable self-lubricating penis. 

It was all quite interesting, but none of that taught him what to actually do with it. He’d never been attracted to a Cardassian before, so it just hadn’t been something he’d spent the time exploring the nuances of. But some of the anatomy had…piqued Jake’s interest in ways that surprised him. 

The pornography he found was about as helpful as pornography usually was in that it made him horny, but really only improved on the anatomy lesson from the diagrams. He got to see the retractable penis in action, which was interesting, but they all seemed quite large and Jake wasn’t sure he’d be able to handle something quite that large, despite the self-lubrication, which did excite Jake and was something human dicks were really missing. So many things would be easier if they could self-lubricate. 

The forums were not helpful, though there had been a few lost souls like himself posting questions about the actual mechanics of human-cardassian sex, but there were no answers. It frustrated Jake, but he realized that once he figured it out with J’amal, he likely wouldn’t be coming back to these spaces to answer the questions, he’d be too busy being impaled on some giant Cardassian cock - or buried ballsdeep inside some sexy Cardassian - to care…and right now both sounded like excellent options to Jake. 

The pregnancy information was also not helpful, and Jake made a point to make sure that Cardassian men couldn’t get pregnant; they couldn’t; you could never be too careful though.

After a few hours, he gave up his hunt; his mind exhausted from the day and his body alert from all the pornography he’d consuming in the name of research. With a sigh, he shut the computer terminal down and resigned himself to looking slightly less stupid the next time he was with J’amal. 

Then he felt like an absolute moron, but for a different reason. He was staying at Garak’s estate…Julian also lived there. He chastised his own lack of creative thinking; it would be one heck of an awkward conversation, but Jake happened to know a human man who knew exactly what it was like to have sex with a Cardassian man…and he lived not thirty metres from where Jake was. It was going to be one heck of an awkward conversation, he never wanted to think about Julian or Garak naked together, but desperate times called for desperate measures. 

And Jake was desperate. 

He checked the time, shocked at how late it was, far too late for him to be making a non-emergency call. He opted to send a text-only message to Julian, asking to speak with him in the morning before he went to the hospital. Jake had to be at the Festival in the early afternoon, so hopefully that worked out. 

——————  
Jake made his way up to the main house to see Julian, an invitation for breakfast had come in while Jake was getting a few needed hours of sleep. He was exhausted and his body hurt everywhere from the dancing. Walking into the house from the backyard, his was overcome with the delicious smell of breakfast: eggs, bacon, pancakes, coffee….his mouth salivating at the thought. 

“Jake! Come, sit with me,” Julian called from the breakfast nook just off the kitchen. “Coffee?” he asked, picking up a large carafe. 

“Yes, please,”

“Good choice, its the real stuff too. I managed to squirrel away a few bags of it the last time I was on Earth and I only bring it out for special occasions.”

“Well, I’m honoured,” he said, adding a splash of cream to the steaming beverage. He breathed in a deep breath of the intoxicating aroma before taking a sip. “Damn, that’s good. I love raktajino, but sometimes coffee is what you want,” 

“Very true, very true,” Julian replied, taking a large sip of his own coffee. 

“Thanks again for letting me stay here while I’m visiting,” 

“We’re delighted to have you. I hope the guest house is satisfactory, Garak was sprucing it up for your arrival,”

“Oh, it’s more than satisfactory, it’s bigger than pretty much everywhere else I’ve ever lived. It has a pool!” 

“That was my idea, Cardassians aren’t big on swimming - the whole reptilian thing,”

“Makes sense. Will Garak be joining us, I’d like to thank him personally,”

“Unfortunately no, he’s been caught up on the North shore with some political issue, something about grain imports…he’s been there for the past three days, but he sends his regards and hopes he’ll be able to attend your reading tomorrow. I hear yesterday went well.” 

“Aw, thanks and that’s considerate of him, but he doesn’t have to come. Goodness knows he’s read enough of my writing over the years, he has put in his time.” 

“Don’t be silly, Jake, we’re all very proud of you and we want to support you, I’ll be coming to your workshop this afternoon in fact, I’m in the city for some consultations so it works out nicely,” 

“You’re enjoying living on Cardassia then?,

“Yes, very much. The weather suits me - I’ve always preferred a dry climate after all, and I’m able to practice the type of medicine I want to, actually help people, develop new techniques and policies. And people out this end of the quadrant tend to be less…particular about certain things that matter closer to the core; no one here cares how I’m here, just that I’m a good doctor who will treat them like a person,” 

They spent the next twenty minutes chatting about the Festival, news from old friends, Julian’s work and Garak’s newfound job as Castellan. It was nice to be with an old friend again, someone who knew him and who he knew; he’d normally be more relaxed than what he was, but the giant uncomfortable question was constantly looming in the back of his mind. 

Jake ran one last pancake around in the butter and syrup on his plate, his stomach full but he was unable to not finish the last pancake. 

“Julian, I have a personal question to ask,” Jake hedged, finally having the courage to broach the subject. 

“Yes? What is it?”

“It’s um…I’m not really sure how to bring it up,” he stammered, a flush blooming on his cheeks. 

“Jake, I’m a doctor, there is nothing you can say that will shock me, so I suggest you just say it, I promise not to judge,” 

Jake took a deep breath, “I have some questions about….sex,” he started, waiting for a reaction from Julian, but none came, the man just continued to look at him in an encouraging way. 

“Like, I know how it works, but um….I met someone and I don’t know…like how it works…” he mumbled, immediately regretting even bringing it up; he should have just left it at having a nice breakfast. 

Julian nodded, getting the just of where Jake was going,“inter-species relations are always usually a challenge”

“Yaaa, he’s a Cardassian….” Jake admitted. 

A look of clarity came over Julian’s face, now understanding the full breadth of Jake’s question, followed by a kind smile. “Well, that’s lovely, Jake. Tell me about him,” 

Which Jake did, summarizing his day with J’amal - omitting the parts that made him sound like a slut though. 

“And this J’amal, he returns your affections?”

Jake coughed into his coffee, “yes, that has been made quite clear”. He unconsciously adjusted the collar of his shirt to ensure it was covering the rather large hickey J’amal had left there. 

Julian caught the gesture and chuckled, “got it. My first piece of advice, you might want to invest in a dermal regenerator or some different fashion choices, Cardassians have a neck fetish that never goes away,” he shifted his own collar, pulling it down to show a fading bruise at the base of his neck to which Jake tried very hard not to conjure the imagery of how it got there. 

“However, my biggest piece of advice is to be open minded. Cardassian men make wonderful lovers; they’re passionate and creative and will challenge you, sexually, in ways you didn’t know you liked,” 

That rung true to Jake, thinking back on last night where he pretty much fucked a stranger in the back of a club; that was not something he ever engaged in. 

“Know your own boundaries and express them, but be open to trying new things, it’s usually worth it. Also, their stamina is indeed something to write home about,” a whistful look came over his features. “Now, if you’re finding stamina to be an issue, there are some very mild medications that I have found to be quite helpful, but there are also some techniques you can try to help…delay things on your end, if you catch my meaning”

Jake wanted the floor to open up and swallow him; yes, he caught Julian’s meaning. He did not think this through, now, over his pancakes and coffee, he was about to learn about how passionate a lover Garak was, made worse by the fact that Jake had to ask more followup questions. He’d come this far, no turning back. 

“Okay, that’s good to know,” he replied, “but we’re not there yet and its the there that confuses me. Are there things we can’t do? Are there things I should do? What things really get them going? I’m sort of hanging out in left field here, you have to help me,” he pleaded. 

Julian chuckled, “I will absolutely help you, but first I need more coffee,” and he topped up both their drinks.

“Alright, let’s talk penetration, lots of fun options there,” 

—— 

He was participating in his second panel, this one on new writing technologies and techniques; something Jake actually felt qualified to speak to as he spent a lot of time playing with technology, testing new programs, and was comfortable with a good ol’ fashioned pencil and paper. 

Jake found it hard to focus, his gaze kept trying to find J’amal in the crowd, but not being successful; Julian was there, who gave him an encouraging thumbs up every time their eyes met, but he couldn’t see J’amal. Every time he couldn’t find him, his heart sank a little and he started to worry that the promise of more from last night was simply for last night or that J’amal had second thoughts or realized he wasn’t actually interested in Jake anymore or a million other reasons that Jake could come up with. He relaxed a little when he saw J’amal walk into the workshop tent, relaxing more when the man waved at him, grinned and found a seat near the back. 

For the rest of the session, Jake’s gaze kept returning to J’amal, his eyes lingering on him, focusing on small details - the texture of his shirt, the little curl of his hair - and he desperately wanted to get out of here, go somewhere private. It was a bit ridiculous really, Jake was an adult and this was hardly his first sexual experience, and yet here he was, body itching as if it was. 

Speaking to Julian about things had Jake feeling much more relaxed about the whole ordeal; and it really wasn’t an ordeal at all, Julian was the right blend of personal and professional, answering all of Jake’s questions and ones he hadn’t thought to ask yet. And once he disassociated Garak from the nature of the conversation, Jake was able to get some really great information and tips from Julian. It had also served to quell a lot of the nerves Jake had yesterday, making him more eager to get J’amal alone.

The man himself wasn’t helping matters much, every time their eyes met, he would wink at him or smile that sly, slanted grin that apparently was all it took to make Jake’s knees weak. He was secretly hoping there weren’t any Betazoids in the crowd, because they would have no debate as to where Jake’s mind was focused. 

The workshop panel finally finished, with a surprising number of questions from the audience on the topic, and he made his way over to J’amal.

“You did wonderfully, Jake” he said, hands behind his back, posture very proper, “I was actually hoping you might sign this,” and he pulled a small paperback book out from behind his back, a copy of Anslem, Jake’s first published book. 

“…before you get really famous and forget all about me,” J’amal added. 

“It would be impossible to forget you, J’amal you are…quite memorable, and I would be happy to sign it,” he smiled, eyes bright with meaning. He reached out to take the book and pen offered, taking the opportunity to let his fingers lightly linger around J’amal’s wrist, grazing the tapered ridges and pressure points there. It was a tip Julian gave him and it worked, judging by the subtle intake of breath he heard. Jake tried to hide his grin, keeping his face down, opening the book to the first page to sign. 

“Jake!” a voice called from behind them. Jake turned to see Julian coming towards them. 

“Wonderful job, Jack, just wonderful, you really have a knack for public speaking,” Julian said, smiling wildly and pulling Jake into a hug. 

“Thanks Julian, it was fun! I’m glad you were able to come,”

“Me as well. Garak sends his regards and regrets but well, you know, danger to the empire and all that,” he rambled, “I don’t believe we’ve met, I’m Julian,” he said, turning towards J’amal. 

“Pleasure to meet you, I am J’amal” he replied warmly, extending his hand in the traditional Terran greeting. 

“It’s very nice to meet you, Jake speaks highly of you,” he said, and Jake caught an odd expression cross Julian’s face, unsure on how to place it. 

“Well, he flatters me, but I appreciate the good word, nonetheless,” J’amal replied. 

Julian continued to look at J’amal, examining him, “I’m sorry, but you seem familiar, do we know each other?” 

“I don’t think so, Doctor. I work at the parliament so perhaps you’ve seen me there around the Castellan’s office?” he suggested. 

“Must be,” Julian said, in an attempt to sound convincing, gaze flicking towards Jake and then back to J’amal. 

“I do wish I could stay, Jake, but I have to be at the clinic shortly, I just wanted to say a quick hello. You take good care of him, J’amal, I know people,”

“I will, Doctor,” J’amal promised and with a kindly pat on the shoulder, Julian was off to his work. 

“Considering the heat of the day, could I perhaps entice you to a chilled challoa tea?” J’amal asked, 

“That sounds lovely,” Jake replied, reflecting that J’amal could probably entice him into just about anything. They turned to walk towards the small cafe stand set up along the walking path of the park where the Festival was being held, hands casually at their sides. 

They were walking close enough to each other that their hands brushed against each other every few strides, and Jake fought the impulse to twine their fingers together; they didn’t cover every aspect of public displays of affection in his Seducing a Cardassian 101 talk with Julian and part of him was back to doubting whether J’amal wanted to actually do anything more with Jake, his anxiety spinning tall tales. 

“You’re doing it again,” J’amal whispered.

“Doing what?” Jake asked, panicking slightly, worried that he’d violated some unknown Cardassian custom again. 

“Doubting yourself, doubting me,” 

“What?” Jake said, slightly irritated that the man was right but not wanting to admit it. 

“I have invited you for tea as a pretence,” 

“A pretence for what?” Jake asked, pretty sure of the answer, but needing the confirmation. 

J’amal stopped walking and turned towards Jake, looking him right in the eyes, “a pretence for inviting you back to my apartment, getting you naked, and having my way with you. It felt slightly uncouth for me to just outwardly state that invitation.” 

“Oh,” 

“And now we’re having this uncomfortable discussion. I do wish you would believe me when I’ve demonstrated my interest in you,” he said, his voice a mix of distress and frustration. 

“How can you tell when I’m doubting it? Like just now and then last night,” Jake asked genuinely. 

“Ah, you humans are quite easy to read, your emotions are always so close to the surface. You’re also not military, so you’ve not been trained to disguise them, and you’re an artist, a more emotionally open type by design,” he explained. 

“I had no idea I was such an open book,” he said, the knowledge distressing him. 

“Jake, it’s not that bad, so please don’t worry about it. I’ve been trained to read humans and I like you, so I’m also paying more attention to you so, I should notice. Like how I noticed that you enjoy when a dig my fingers into your hips,” he continued, lowering his voice for the latter. 

“Oh,” Jake replied, blushing at the remark, “ya, I do like that,” 

J’amal took a step closer to Jake, not close enough to be touching, but close enough to be flirting with social convention for such a public place, “I’ve also noticed that you like my ridges and I know you want to see more of them….taste more of them,”

Jake swallowed, looking around them to see if anyone had been close enough to hear the words he was saying. If he’d been in a mild state of arousal all day, that was nothing compared to the fire that was beginning to build in him now. He very much wanted to see more of J’amal’s ridges and definitely wanted to taste them. 

He cleared his throat and leaned in the last respectable centimetre between them, “I think you should be more uncouth,” 

J’amal grinned, “oh, that can be arranged.”

_____________ 

“I need to unlock the door,” J’amal tried to say between impatient heated kisses. 

“I’m not stopping you,” Jake mumbled, relaxing against the doorframe where he was currently being pressed up against, his hands roaming J’amal’s exposed chest, Jake having made quick work of the buttons, letting the fabric hang open. 

“You’re literally in the way,” J’amal pointed out, but not really helping the situation as he undid Jake’s belt and unzipped his pants, reaching his hands in to cup Jake’s ass, pulling him closer to him for a searing kiss. 

He finally pulled away, eyes dilated, scales flushed, “let’s not give my neighbours a show…I want you naked on my bed,”

Jake bit his lip, but moved himself out of the way, allowing J’amal to unlock the door, sauntering in when it was pushed ajar. 

While he was definitely here for one big reason, he was also eager to know more about J’amal and being able to see his living space was a great way to learn more about the person, so Jake took the opportunity to look around. 

There was evidence of J’amal’s interests all over the small apartment; piles of books from all different cultures, strewn about in a sort of semi-organized, semi-haphazard way…which really described the apartment in general. Jake loved it; it felt lived in, a home, clean but not overly organized or sanitized that was all too common with his Starfleet experience. He liked a little mess. 

There was also evidence of J’amal’s artistic pursuits, finished or semi-finished clay projects scattered throughout the apartment, with tools and paints and brushes and hunks of clay and rock. Jake loved it; it was the space of an artist. He walked over to a shelf built into the wall, the shelves artfully displaying finished pieces. 

“Did you do all these?” he asked 

J’amal came to stand next to him, “yes, most of them, the middle shelf is works by friends,” 

Jake lifted a piece off the shelf, a mishmash of angularity and rounded edges, with differing hues of black that seemed to roll and shift in the light. It wasn’t a sculpture of anything Jake recognized, and yet he was drawn to it, impressed by the artistry and skill it took to make, the feel of it in his hands. 

“You’re very talented,” 

J’amal chuckled, “thanks, its just a hobby though,” 

“You could be a professional if you wanted,” 

“Maybe one day...” He said. “You should keep it,”

“I couldn’t!” Jake replied, eyes dancing between the art piece and J’amal, putting the piece back on the shelf. 

“You can and I insist. Art should be shared. It would make me happy to know this was in your home,” he said, smiling kindly at Jake. 

“Then I would be honoured, thank you J’amal,” he said, stepping closer to him. 

Jake reached a hand out to wrap around one of J’amal’s hands, bringing it up to eye level, letting his fingers trace the patterns of his skin. He fell silent in his exploration, the only sound in the apartment was their breathing, his mouth soon following the path of his fingers, lips trailing lightly along the scales and ridges, stopping to kiss the inside of his wrist, tongue darting out to press against the pressure point under the skin. 

J’amal gasped. 

Jake lowered J’amal’s hand, letting his own hand run up the man’s arm as he lowered it, Jake’s other hand mirroring the action on the other arm, feeling the strength of his shoulders, of his chest as he undid the buttons he missed earlier, reversing his hands as it was unbuttoned, pushing the soft fabric off his shoulders, hands running along the skin as he pushed it down his arms, the fabric pooling on the floor. 

Jake moved next to J’amal’s pants, the light summery fabric running through his fingers as he undid the simple drawstring at his waist, the pants falling to the floor to join the shirt. J’amal stepped out of the pants, standing bare in front of Jake and Jake was mesmerized by the vision, his eyes running along the curves of his body, so different and yet so similar to his own human body. 

“You are stunning,” Jake stated in awe, hands running slowly across the exposed skin, opting to trace a ridge pattern that ran along his sides and over his hips. 

J’amal caught Jake’s chin in his hands, pulling him in for a kiss. 

The sensuality of before evaporated as J’amal ran a tongue along the inside of Jake’s lip, setting Jake’s body aflame, no longer wanting slowness, but needing to know and feel every part of this man, clinging to him, touching everywhere he could touch. 

“You’re not naked yet,” J’amal commented between breaths, hands pushing Jake’s pants down - the work already started from earlier, hands moving quickly to the bottom of Jake’s shirt, pulling it up and over Jake’s head in one quick motion and then Jake too was standing naked. 

“You are beautiful,” J’amal said, hands doing his own exploration of Jake’s skin, the smoothness a contradiction to his own.

J’amal dug his fingers into the flesh at Jake’s hips, dragging a moan of out Jake, pulling him back towards the bedroom. Jake ran a finger along a small ridge at the base of J’amal’s spine, going in the opposite direction of the scales, dragging a loud curse word out of J’amal. 

“Prophets, Jake, where did you learn about that” he asked, eyes blown wide, some of the scales on his chest flushing a deeper blue. 

“I may have done some research,” he replied, once again glad that he had asked Julian as his tips were coming in very handy. 

J’amal growled, “you are full of surprises, Jake Sisco,” 

Jake grinned and pushed J’amal on the shoulders, toppling him onto the bed. Jake followed suit, climbing onto the bed to straddle J’amal’s hips, his cock hanging heavy in front of him, beginning to drip some pre-cum onto J’amal’s abdomen. 

J’amal growled again, reaching a hand up to wrap about Jake’s cock, starting a slow pumping motion. Jake moaned, the texture of J’amal’s skin against the soft tissue of his cock tickling a kink he didn’t know he had. 

Not wanting it to be over too soon, Jake leant forward, the motion making J’amal’s grip slip, his hand falling onto his own stomach. Jake grinned and leaned over to kiss J’amal, hands running up the scaled sides of the other man. He let his mouth slide off J’amal’s lips, trailing down his throat, giving just a little bit of attention to that spot at the apex of his shoulder before moving down, thrilled to finally be able to trace all these ridges with his mouth, to touch them all, to follow the map across this beautiful man’s skin. 

He moved down J’amal’s chest, slowly feeling all the scales and ridges along the way, hands touching where his mouth could not, delighting in the gasps and moans he was able to pull from his partner. He paused when he neared the lower part of J’amal’s abdomen, the pornography and Julian’s tips helping to orient him for the next part. He looked up to J’amal’s face, the man’s head thrown back against the bed enjoying Jake’s ministrations. 

Emboldened, Jake ran a finger over J’amal’s left hip bone, moving his finger along the highly-sensitive nerve that ran into the groin area. J’amal moaned loudly as his body reacted, his cock sliding from where it had been sheathed safely inside his body. Jake slid to the floor, kneeling and tentatively, Jake dipped his tongue out, lightly touching the tip of the pastel-blue protruding organ, making J’amal moan with a cry. Jake continued, taking the reaction as positive, and decided to dive right in, opening his mouth more and slowly taking more of J’amal into his mouth until he had as much of it in his mouth as he could, the tip hitting the back of his throat. While J’amal was, thankfully, not as large as some of the men in the pornography he saw, he was considerably larger than anyone he’d been with. He was fascinated - and incredibly turned on - by the anatomical design of J’amal’s body; everything from it being hidden to the taste - surprisingly sweet - of his cock. 

He hummed around the cock, the technique being as successful with J’amal as it had proven to be in the past. He pulled himself nearly off J’amal’s cock, leaving just the tip between his lips before diving back down, setting up a rhythm, the smoothness of the skin a stark contract to the texture of the rest of J’amal’s body. 

Jake had been settling into a good rhythm, his jaw adjusting to the size, when J’amal abruptly sat upright, eyes locking with Jake’s. 

“I want to watch you,” he said, voice low. 

Jake grinned around J’amal’s cock, the shift of position allowing him to take more of him into his mouth, resuming his earlier rhythm. He added his hands, wrapping them around the inches of cock that couldn’t fit into his mouth, the sweet, natural lubricant of J’amal’s body adding the slickness needed for him to set a tandem rhythm. Jake sensed the shift in J’amal, the warning that he was about to come, Jake paused, excited, cock heavy on his tongue, and sucked a little harder, increasing the pressure in his mouth as J’amal came with a roar, spilling himself into Jake’s throat and mouth. He was thrilled to have been able to bring J’amal to release, the kinky part of his brain delighting in the abundance of cum filling his mouth, it too as sweet as the natural lubricant and he tried to swallow what he could, the surplus running down his chin. 

J’amal wasted no time, pulling Jake up into a filthy kiss, his own cum smearing on his lips as he plundered Jake’s mouth. When he pulled away, his lips were swollen and decorated with the blue hue of his own cum. 

“Prophets, you look…” he started, running a thumb across Jake’s lips, “…my seed looks so good spattered against your skin, like an art piece,” he stammered, clearly a little incoherent from his orgasm. 

Jake smiled at him, quite proud of himself. 

“I want you to enter me,” J’amal said, coming back around to himself. “It will be too much for me to enter you tonight…and I am…too eager to do the prep work,”

Jake grinned, and pulled J’amal into a kiss, “I want it all,” he murmured into his lips. 

“Prophets, yes,” he said, falling backwards onto the bed and pulling Jake with him, spreading his thighs to nestle Jake within them, rolling them so he was underneath. 

“You’ve done most of the work so far, its only fair,” J’amal said, from his position straddling Jake. He took Jake’s cock in his hands, stroking him firmly, making Jake moan. 

“J’amal, I’m not going to last much longer, and unlike you, I need recovery time,” he gasped, lifting his hips up into J’amal’s very capable hands. 

J’amal chuckled kindly, “then we better get to it then,” positioning himself above Jake’s cock. “You humans, your biology is so antiquated. Your sex and reproductive organs being one and the same; well the males anyways, at least your females can have multiple orgasms,”

Jake groaned, “hey, we do okay,” Jake defended, thought secretly agreeing, “that is however dependent on whether or not our partners want to lecture us or just get on,” he said pointedly. 

J’amal grinned slyly, “someone is pushy when he’s horny,” but lined up Jake’s cock with his cloacas, settling the tip just inside, making Jake whine. 

“J’amallll,” he whined, which earned him the man sinking slowly down on Jake’s cock. 

Jack rolled his head back at the sensation, nothing like anything he’d had before, the texture, the pressure, the temperature, all different. The natural lubricant of J’amal’s body provided the perfect amount of slick for him to slide right in and he was so erotically delighted to discover that the inside of J’amal’s cloacas was scaled as well, with ridges pushing along the full length of Jake’s cock. 

“Oh god, there’s ridges,” he moaned, hands fisting the bed cover trying to not come just from that alone. J’amal bottomed out, Jake’s cock fully buried inside the man’s body, the scales of J’amal’s thighs pressing into Jake’s own. 

Once settled, Jake felt the walls surrounding his cock contract, the ridges pushing more into his flesh as the pressure increased, just flirting deliciously with the edge of pain, but still remaining decidedly pleasurable. Jake swore loudly, heels digging into the bed. 

“Is that too much pressure?” J’amal asked 

“What? You’re controlling this?” Jake managed to say. 

“See, this is what happens when evolution gives you different sex and reproductive organs, pleasure vs purpose,” he teased, increasing the pressure a little bit to make a point. 

“Fuckkkkk,” Jake moaned

J’amal pulled himself off Jake, leaving just the barest tip inside, before plunging himself back down, beginning a steady rhythm. 

“Harder,” Jake moaned and J’amal complied, increasing the speed and pressure of his hips. 

Jake lifted his head to look at J’amal, watching as he slid in and out of the man’s body, his muscles tensed as he rode Jake, head tossed back as his own orgasm built once more. The sight was painfully erotic, the muscles straining underneath the network of ridges, powerful thighs moving ontop of him, and gods, the sensations enveloping his cock; Jake could get addicted to this; he wasn’t sure if sex after this would ever be the same. 

J’amal’s movements became increasingly erratic, the pressure around Jake’s cock fluctuating with the erratic movements. He felt his release coming, his attention focused on J’amal as he sunk down on Jake once more, Jake coming with a yell, pouring himself into J’amal’s body, with J’amal’s second orgasm following, head thrown back, mouth open. 

J’amal sat on Jake’s lap until the pleasure calmed down, moving to get off him once Jake was focused on him once again. Jake shuddered as J’amal got off his lap, his softening cock slipping against the ridges inside him, the nerves overstimulated. 

“God, we have to do that again,” Jake said. 

“Absolutely,”

They laid there, next to each other in silence, Jake rolling over and resting a hand on J’amal’s chest, tracing soft lines along his skin, his mind wondering, irritatingly settling on the oddities about J’amal that he’d be ignoring. He tried to not focus on them and live in the moment, but he wouldn’t be a Sisco if he didn’t have an irritating knack for investigation. 

“J’amal” he hedged,

“Mmmm?” 

“You’re not actually a clerk right?,”

“You already know the answer to that, Jake,” 

Jake smiled sadly, he did know. He’d spent enough time around secretive people - Starfleet to spies - to know when someone was involved with something more than what they said. 

“If I asked you what you actually did, could you tell me?”

“You know the answer to that question too, Jake” 

He did know that too; J’amal was probably violating rules just by entertaining the conversation. 

“Is it about how Julian recognized you earlier today?”, Jake now able to place that odd look as recognition, followed by concern.

J’amal paused before answering, “yes,” he said simply. 

“Are you going to get in trouble for this?”

“Yes,” 

“Do you work for Garak?” he finally asked, just coming out with it. 

J’amal sighed, but was silent and Jake let him have a moment to collect himself. 

“J’amal?” he prompted 

“I work for the Castellan,” J’amal said, his face pained as he spoke, “I’m -”

“Obsidian Order,” Jake finished, needing to throw up. 

“Yes,” he admitted, “sort of…it’s complicated…it’s not the organization it used to be, we’re changing…my speciality is Alpha Quadrant species, specifically Humans, Vulcans, and Romulans…” he rambled on. “Prophets, I could get charged with treason for even talking to you about this,”

“I won’t have you killed, if that’s what you’re worried about,” Jake joked, worry starting to build in his chest. 

“I know that, Jake” he said, chuckling a bit, “I trust you,”

“I want to trust you too,” Jake replied, meaning it, “Is your name even J’amal?” 

“Yes, that’s my name,” 

“Does Tansy work with you?” 

“Yes,” he replied, tone clipped, “she thought I was being reckless the other night and violating my assignment”. 

Well that explained the woman’s seemingly dislike of Jake, it was a frustration with J’amal for doing whatever it was he was doing with him. That was a relief; he liked to earn his enemies...and a part of him was glad they weren't involved, because even though he had more questions than answers about J’amal, he still felt a pang of jealousy thinking about someone else having him. 

Silent stretched between them and Jake was torn between anger over ruining what was a mindblowing afternoon or glad that he did it and angry with J’amal for … something. 

“So what, you were sent to fuck me or just babysit me?” Jake said, asking the question that he’d been wondering. 

“Neither, Jake. The Castellan - Garak - asked me to keep an eye on you, he was worried about you getting hurt. Like it or not Jake, you are actually a target here; certain Cardassian sects who are *not* happy with the new direction or reconciliation would love to make an example out of the Emissary’s son, really hurt the Bajorans. So yes, I kept an eye on you,”

Jake understood that side of things; he understood how tense political upheaval could be and why he would be an easy target. It was easy to forget that being Ben Sisco’s son meant something out in this region of space; in other systems he was able to live a rather anonymous life, but here, here he meant something. There was a reason his dad had had numerous attempts on his life over the years. So, yes, Jake understood that, and he wasn’t mad at Garak for making sure he was protected; if he’d spent any time on it, he would have realized Garak would set up a protective guard for him. But Jake hadn’t thought about it, he’d been too excited at the idea of being invited to participate in the festival, too excited for what it represented for the region. Jake knew something was weird when he abruptly left the club, earlier even in his argument with Tansy, but Jake had chosen to ignore it; wanting this, whatever it was, eager to follow his own lust. 

“You did a little more than keeping an eye on me,” Jake replied, a sadness in his voice. 

“that is … very true,” he said, having the decency to sound guilty. 

“Why did you?” Jake asked, afraid of the answer. J’amal had made him feel things he’d never felt before, made him want to explore things he’d never been interested in, he didn’t want that to have all been fake or something J’amal had been hired to do. The idea made Jake want to throw up; like he was somehow contaminated. 

J’amal rolled over to look at Jake, a wry, sad grin on his face, “you were cute and I wanted you,” he said, making a shrugging gesture, “I was fine to ignore my attraction to you for my job…but then you started flirting with me and then…I stopped fighting it. I rationalized that there really wasn’t a better way to keep an eye on you than getting under you so…” he gave Jake a wink. 

Jake rolled his eyes sarcastically, really not feeling any better, still angry with him. 

“This,” he said, indicating at the space between them, “wasn’t supposed to happen, and probably shouldn’t have, but that’s my problem to sort out,” 

“Problem to sort out?”

J’amal laughed, “I engaged in a highly sexual affair with the Castellan’s nephew while on the Castellan’s payroll….I’m going to have some issues to sort out,” 

“I wasn’t even really supposed to make contact with you,”

“What do you mean?”

“I was supposed to observe from afar, but … as with everything with you apparently, you went and forced me to change plan.” 

At Jake’s confused look, he continued, “When we met, you walked into me...I put myself in your way and made you walk into me. You were walking down that alleyway, looking for some random restaurant that came recommended…what you didn’t know was that restaurant is actually a cover for an anti-reformation sect. Having you walk into a place full of people who would have enjoyed seeing you dead was probably not a good idea, so I had to change plans. And here we are,” 

Silence sat between them once more, Jake digesting the information. 

“Jake,” J’amal said, his tone now more serious, “I don’t regret what we did, far from it,”

“Is this….is this real?” he asked, the real crux of the issue. 

“Prophets, yes. I’m so very glad you came onto me so intensely,” 

Jake snorted, “I was not intense,” Jake rebutted

J’amal just gave him an incredulous look, “I absolutely encouraged it, but you started it, looking at me the way you did,”

Jake knew J’amal was right, “fine, alright, yes, I came on to you first”

“Technically,” J’amal started, a dark look in his eyes as he trailed a hand up Jake’s chest, lightly touching one of his nipples, “I think you were seducing me,” 

Jake raised a hand to touch J’amal’s chest, his body tingling as he felt J’amal press up against him, his entire body touching a naked J’amal. 

“Goal achieved then,” he sighed, nuzzling his face into J’amal’s neck, Jake sighing again at the feel of the differently textured skin as J’amal slid his hands over Jake’s torso, rolling so as to be more ontop of him. 

Jake turned his face to suckle on one of J’amal’s neck ridges, just above the spot he wanted, training wet mouth marks as he moved up the long column of J’amal’s neck. He sucked an earlobe into his mouth, biting down a little harder than he might normally, “I want to feel you…inside me,” he whispered into J’amal’s ear.

“Prophets…” J’amal moaned under his breath. 

“I believe you threatened to make me a…wanton mess whose screams would wake up the household….we’re a few blocks away from the house, so you’re going to have to work a little harder for them to hear it,” he teased, spreading his thighs apart for J’amal to settle between them. 

“Oh, I will,” J’amal promised. 

END

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sorry for all the J names! :P I had J'amal's name quite early on and it just felt right for him...and then I ended up using Julian more than I expected and then the story just kept expanding annnnd.... here we are :P 
> 
> I also had to cut some plot corners due to time constraints - this story....got a litttttle away from me hahaha. But I hope it was enjoyable nonetheless.


End file.
